{#
 This Source Code Form is subject to the terms of the Mozilla Public
 License, v. 2.0. If a copy of the MPL was not distributed with this
 file, You can obtain one at https://mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/.
#}

{% from "macros-protocol.html" import callout_compact with context %}

{% extends "firefox/base/base-protocol.html" %}

{% block page_title %}Incognito browser: What it really means{% endblock %}

{% block page_desc %}
  Firefox calls it private browsing, Chrome calls it incognito mode. Both let you browse the web without saving your browsing history.
{% endblock %}

{% block page_css %}
  {{ css_bundle('protocol-callout') }}
  {{ css_bundle('protocol-article') }}
  {{ css_bundle('incognito-browser') }}
{% endblock %}

{% block content %}
  <div class="mzp-l-content">
  <article class="mzp-c-article">

    <h1 class="mzp-c-article-title">{{ self.page_title() }}</h1>
    <p class="mzp-c-article-intro">Firefox calls it private browsing, Chrome calls it incognito mode. Both let you browse the web without saving your browsing history.</p>

    {{ download_firefox_thanks(dom_id='download-button-primary', download_location='primary') }}

    <img src="{{ static('img/firefox/browsers/incognito-browser/incognito-browser-a.png') }}" alt="" class="c-article-image" width="954" height="372">

    <h2 class="c-section-title">What Incognito/Private Mode Does</h2>

    <p>Incognito or private mode keeps your browsing history private. That’s it.</p>

    <h2 class="c-section-title">What Incognito/Private Mode Doesn’t Do</h2>

    <p>
    {% with url='https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/12/private-web-browsing-not-as-private-as-you-think-research.html' %}
      A 2018 survey of 460 internet users by the University of Chicago found that
      <a href="{{ url }}">there are a lot of misconceptions</a> out there about private
      browsing or incognito mode. It won’t protect you from viruses or malware. It won’t
      keep your internet service provider (ISP) from seeing where you’ve been online. It
      won’t stop websites from seeing your physical location. And any bookmarks you save
      while in private browsing or incognito mode won’t disappear when you switch it off.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

    <h2 class="c-section-title-large">Why go private/incognito?</h2>

    <p>
      Just because you’re using private browsing mode doesn’t mean you’re up to something
      nefarious. Perhaps you want to keep your work and personal life separate. You might
      share a computer or device and you don’t want your siblings snooping. You could be
      shopping for a gift and you don’t want anything to spoil the surprise. Or maybe you
      just want to limit the amount of data companies collect about you and you value privacy.
      Incognito or private browsing mode is made for any of these scenarios.
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Web Tracking</h3>

    <p>
      A lot of sites keep track of your browsing activity. Most do it to understand if you’re
      interested in purchasing a product or clicking on an article. They can also do it to help
      make their sites easier to use. But almost all tracking is done to serve you ads.
    </p>

    <p>
      Online ads are customized based on your browsing. Been searching for a new pair of sandals?
      “Shoe Store X” has a great deal for you. The company knows where you’ve been because they
      dropped a bit of code into your browser called a cookie. The cookie tracks you, and so do
      Shoe Store X ads.
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Cookies</h3>

    <p>
      Cookies were first used to customize websites, keep track of shopping carts, and maintain
      online account security, but today most are used to help companies serve targeted ads.
    </p>

    <p>
      Here’s how it works: You visit a site, an advertiser leaves a cookie on your browser.
      The cookie is your unique ID. Your information is stored in the cloud along with that ID.
      That can include which sites you visited, how long you visited them, what you clicked on,
      your language preferences and more.
    </p>

    <p>
      Cookies also help advertisers deliver ads in your social media feeds. Social sites have
      their own tracking schemes and they’re far more robust. They can track every click, post,
      and comment. In addition, cookies can report what you’ve been doing online to a social site,
      which is how some ads follow you into social media.
    </p>

    <img src="{{ static('img/firefox/browsers/incognito-browser/incognito-browser-b.png') }}" alt="" class="c-article-image" width="954" height="361">

    <h2 class="c-section-title-large">Going Incognito</h2>

    <p>
      So you’ve decided to keep to yourself online, to go incognito or enter private browsing mode.
      What does that mean? In Firefox, Private Browsing deletes cookie data when you close the browser
      window and doesn’t track your browsing data. It also blocks tracking cookies by default. Finally,
      it won’t remember any files you download, but those files will still be on your computer.
    </p>

    <p>
      In Chrome, incognito mode does the same thing. In either case, your actions could be visible
      to the websites you visit, your employer or school, or your internet service provider (ISP).
      Also, if you sign into any accounts, your browsing activity may be saved to that account. And
      chances are if you’re using Chrome, you’ll be logged into your Google account.
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Firefox Tracking Protection</h3>

    <p>
    {% with tp='https://support.mozilla.org/kb/tracking-protection',
            disconnect='http://disconnect.me/'
    %}
      Firefox goes beyond private browsing with <a href="{{ tp }}">Tracking Protection</a>.
      It stops companies from following you around the web. It uses a list of tracking sites compiled
      by <a href="{{ disconnect }}">Disconnect.me</a>. Whenever a cookie tries to reach a site on the
      list, Tracking Protection blocks it.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Firefox Multi-Account Containers</h3>

    <p>
    {% with containers='https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/multi-account-containers/' %}
      The Firefox <a href="{{ containers }}">Multi-Account Containers</a> add-on isn’t technically
      a form of private browsing or tracking protection, but it can help keep companies from knowing
      everything you do online. It lets you open fresh, cookie-free tabs that can be used for
      different accounts—personal, work, shopping, etc. That means you can use Multi-Account
      Containers to open several Google accounts at once without any overlap. Most trackers
      won’t associate the different accounts, keeping your work life separate from your personal
      life online. Some more advanced trackers, however, can and will track you across different
      accounts, so beware.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Is Incognito/Private Mode Really Private?</h3>

    <p>
      Incognito or private mode will keep your local browsing private, but it won’t stop your ISP,
      school, or employer from seeing where you’ve been online. In fact, your ISP has access to all
      your browsing activity pretty much no matter what you do.
    </p>

    <p>
    {% with vpn='https://blog.mozilla.org/internetcitizen/2017/08/29/do-you-need-a-vpn/' %}
      You can, however, use a <a href="{{ vpn }}">Virtual Private Network (VPN) service</a>. VPN
      services route traffic through remote servers, so it looks like you’re browsing from another
      location or multiple locations. VPN providers can track where you’ve been online, though, so
      it’s good to find a company you can trust to either delete or lock up your browsing activity.
      VPNs won’t block third-party cookies from advertisers, but those cookies won’t be able to
      identify your location accurately, making it difficult or impossible for ad trackers to be
      effective.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

    <p>
    {% with tor='https://www.torproject.org/' %}
      <a href="{{ tor }}">Tor Browser</a> can truly mask your online activity. It bounces traffic
      through multiple servers around the globe, making it difficult to track that traffic. The
      website you visit really has no idea where you are, only the approximate location of the last
      server your request was routed through. But again, even Tor proxy won’t stop third-party
      advertisers from installing cookies in your browser. Tor Browser deletes all cookies when
      closed. People can also start a new session in Tor Browser to clear them as well.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

    <h3 class="c-section-title">Incognito: TL:DR</h3>

    <p>
    {% with tp='https://support.mozilla.org/kb/tracking-protection',
            vpn='https://blog.mozilla.org/internetcitizen/2017/08/29/do-you-need-a-vpn/'
    %}
      Incognito mode keeps your browser history private, and that’s pretty much it. If you want more
      privacy, you’ll need to add <a href="{{ tp }}">Tracking Protection</a> and maybe even browse
      through a <a href="{{ vpn }}">Virtual Private Network (VPN) service</a>. Incognito mode can’t.
    {% endwith %}
    </p>

  </article>
</div>

{% call callout_compact(
  title='Take control of your browser.',
  class='mzp-t-product-firefox mzp-t-firefox mzp-t-background-secondary',
  brand=True,
  brand_product='firefox',
  brand_type='logo',
  brand_size='lg',
) %}
  <div class="download-firefox">
    {{ download_firefox_thanks(dom_id='download-button-secondary', download_location='secondary') }}
  </div>
{% endcall %}

{% endblock %}

{% block js %}{% endblock %}
